On the eve of the NCAA men's college basketball tournament with the First Four on Tuesday, March 18, a new survey has revealed that the majority of the respondents do not want college sports betting in their state.
The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Chicago revealed Monday that about 6 in 10 Americans think betting on professional sports should be legal in their state, but only 4 in 10 U.S. adults say the same thing about legalized wagering on college sports.
More than half oppose legal betting on college sports.
Results were based on interviews with 1,112 U.S. adults conducted from Feb. 6-10, 2025. The margin of error is ±4.1 percentage points for the full sample.
Since 2018, sports betting is now legal and available in 38 states and the District of Columbia. Each state that has legalized sports betting has its own set of rules and regulations regarding what can be wagered on and in what form.
For example, in the state of New Jersey both professional and collegiate sports can be wagered on, however, you cannot bet on any NJ collegiate team or bet on a collegiate event that is being held in the state, such as last weekend's MAAC men's and women's college basketball conference tournaments at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City or next week's Sweet 16 and Elite Eight matchups for the NCAA men's tournament at the Prudential Center in Newark.
More from survey
About one-quarter of U.S. adults said they “frequently” or “occasionally” bet on professional or college sports with friends or through an office pool, down from 36% in 2019. About one-quarter said they bet at least “frequently” in person at casinos, and 14% said they regularly wager online, both of which are generally unchanged from six years ago.
Key Madness dates
The First Four will be held on Tuesday at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio, with the four winners advancing to the traditional first round and 64-team field held on Thursday, Mar. 20 and Friday, Mar. 21 at various sites. The second round takes place on Saturday, Mar. 22 and Sunday, Mar. 23 with winners advancing to the Sweet 16 (Thursday, Mar. 27 and Friday, Mar. 28).
The Elite Eight will be held on Saturday, Mar. 29 and Sunday, Mar. 30 to determine the tournament's Final Four.
The Final Four takes place Saturday, Apr. 5, in San Antonio, Texas, with the national championship game scheduled for Monday, Apr. 7.
